Ukraine in R&D Mode: What the Military, Entrepreneurs, and Doctors Have Learned from Years of War

Ukrainian army became the country's greatest achievement in the past three years, and the banking system proved its readiness for any challenges. At the same time, Ukraine is writing a new global doctrine for the application of unmanned systems and becomes a center of expertise in providing assistance for combat injury.

On how war acts as a catalyst for changes in various spheres and what businesses need to do right now were discussed by the Commander of the UAV Systems of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Robert Brovdi (Madyar), CEO of Starlight Media, Oleksandr Bohutsky, co-founder of the rehabilitation center Superhumans, Olga Rudnieva, and Chairman of the Board of PUMB Bank, Serhiy Chernenko.

We are publishing the most interesting highlights from their speeches during the Deloitte Forum "Conductors of Change."

Robert Brovdi (Madyar), Commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, former entrepreneur

At present, not on paper, but in fact, a new, modern doctrine for the use of unmanned systems is being written in Ukraine. Correspondingly, the future doctrine of national security is being shaped, not just for Ukraine, but for the entire world.

Business advice is to direct your ten percent effort towards miltech.

Experience in business management and understanding of business processes, implemented in the departments, solves a large number of issues. First of all, maintaining the level of motivation. The level of motivation directly correlates with the attitude of commanders towards subordinates and the implementation of security protocols that minimize losses.

[It is necessary] to increase the share of hits from the existing 35% to at least half. So that not every third worm is killed by drones, but every second one. And this will exactly halve the workload for the infantry, who are practically on the front line, while we stand behind them.

Those who are not on the frontlines, especially the business community, I am confident, should focus on miltech. Partially on systematic support of specific projects. Then we will move towards results faster, and the map of Ukraine will shrink more slowly.

Implementation of all initiatives in the army initially took place through testing during immediate application. I can provide my own examples. Starting with the irrigation canals of Kherson region, where, holding RPGs, RPKs, and AKs, we didn't understand who was attacking us. And then the first drone appeared to spy on who was killing from a distance.

Funding necessary projects is our direct dependence. Because technologies in Ukraine today are [insufficiently developed]. Out of the 100% of the means we use to destroy the enemy, 10% in the field of unmanned systems applications are related to foreign ones. These are mostly means of electronic warfare, electronic intelligence, and radar systems.

As of today, Ukrainian-made developments are already present on Western models of [drones]. We have long since developed our own frames, engines, and all other radio-electronic boards and components. We still have issues with cameras, but this is a global problem because the market is very structured. And these are not problems; these are separate business processes.

A call to business – we need to protect ourselves from the aerial threat. For this purpose, four main groups of means are in operation: electronic intelligence tools, electronic warfare tools, radar systems, and means of destruction. These four areas represent the direct path for upcoming R&D (research and development).

"Cholera" costing $300 on four engines as of today, if not on the first try, then on the fourth, stops any thickness of armor, a self-propelled armored vehicle like a tank.

Oleksandr Bohutskyi, CEO of Starlight Media, producer

The army is our number one achievement, our greatest pride, thanks to whom we are able to work here.

I am proud that the army has finally put an end to the issue of equality between men and women. There is no one now who wouldn't say "our defenders, both male and female." We have become a society where the role of women is no longer questioned, seen as our great value. And this sets us apart significantly from Russia.

I believe that the army has been an achievement of the last three years, since the beginning of the war, from the moment the prioritization of the army by all Ukrainian society became undeniable.

If you were to conduct a survey on what we have not achieved in the last 10 years, I have no doubt that corruption would be at the top of the list.

The Most Blessed Huzar, head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, once said that in order to combat corruption, sometimes you need to start with yourself and stop giving. Therefore, when we now look around and search for those responsible, it is very important to always start with ourselves.

When we talk about 100,000-150,000 people with disabilities returning to Ukraine, the acceptance of these people in Ukrainian society is our choice. But it's very challenging.

Last year, we produced "The Bachelor" featuring a leading man with a disability. It was the first time in the world. After this show, the number of people who imagine having sex with a person with a disability increased by 20%.

We must rebuild Ukraine's border in cultural identity, a component of which is that Ukraine will not kill neighbors, will not send missiles there.

When you speak Russian, you tolerate the missiles [that fly into Ukraine]. You just need to accept this for yourself.

And here, very often the number one song on Apple Music is in Russian, the video on YouTube is in Russian. Try to start these cultural changes with yourself. Try to be these agents of change, conductors of the new Ukraine.

Lavrov stated that the area of Russian interests is wherever the Russian language is spoken. So if you didn't like what I said about the Ukrainian language, just think about this. Do not give the enemy the slightest chance to justify their aggression against our country.

Olha Rudnieva,co-founder and CEO of the Superhumans Rehabilitation Center in Lviv

No healthcare system is designed to operate during a war on its territory. Ukraine was no exception. We still have people suffering from COVID-19 and cancer, but in addition to this, we have a massive number of wounded individuals arriving daily from the front line.

Amidst all this, we are facing a severe human capital crisis in the healthcare system.

War-related injuries are changing. At the beginning of the war, we were dealing with mine-explosive injuries and mostly worked with lower limbs. Now the injury structure has changed. Things are falling from above. We have cranio-cerebral injuries, facial injuries, and the loss of upper limbs.

We have made a quantum leap in providing medical care. As of today, we can be a center of expertise in providing medical care for military trauma.

War has always been a catalyst for changes and innovations in the medical field and recoveries. This knowledge must be documented and systematized, and Ukraine should become an expert in medical services for combat injuries.

For three years, I've been surrounded by people who have lost limbs, faces, and who ended up in the SuperHuman Center. These are people who shouldn't have been alive; they are a survivor's mistake. But do you know what they say first? When can I return to the ranks?

The vast majority of our patients who have sustained, let's say, minor injuries, which in our case means an amputation below the knee or elbow, want to return to service.

Almost all deminers return as instructors because they say: "We've already been invested in, we've been trained, I want to return." This is an incredible demonstration of how we have changed. But the question is for us, the civilians. What are we doing while they are fighting for us on the front line?

There was a large study among American and Ukrainian military personnel. American military personnel fear death the most, while Ukrainian personnel fear injury.

They are not as afraid of death as they are of injury because they are not confident that assistance will be provided adequately. People are afraid of becoming disabled, as they do not understand how they will function.

One of our super-heroes, as we call our patients, said: "Thank you for making SuperHumans what it is. Thank you for letting me play golf for the first time, for the free coffee, for my awesome knee. This is the Ukraine I fought for."

It is our responsibility now to prepare for the return of a large number of people, veterans, to integrate them into society and ensure that even when approaching a bank, they understand that they are welcomed here. When entering a medical facility, they should not have to ask for medical services but receive them because they are fighting for this kind of Ukraine.

Serhiy Chernenko, Chairman of the BoardPUMB

The year 2022 was a test of the quality of the reform taking place in the banking sector. It is one of the longest, most consistent, and uninterrupted reforms in our country.

The banking system has a significant reserve of strength. It is ready for greater challenges, which may even include power supply disruptions, because this has been a systematic effort carried out over many years.

The reform of the banking system provided the opportunity not only to be confident in its reliability. The banking system has become a mechanism for transforming other sectors and relationships in the country.

If we look at the banking market, it seems to me that Western banks in Ukraine are somewhat lagging in their development. This is because "big firms" that are based in various beautiful countries have their own plans, while we live in this market.

The leaders in the market in terms of innovation and new ideas are private Ukrainian banks. However, state-owned banks are also making significant progress. This has become even more noticeable during the war, as both state-owned and private banks have resumed lending and continue to do so.

The topic of [raising] capital remains quite relevant for us, as Ukraine is not the wealthiest country in this regard. Any development and entry into other markets primarily requires additional capital.